Excerpt from Essay :

Present day society has problems identifying the exact factors related to Post-traumatic stress disorder because people are unable to reach a solid conclusion regarding its existence. Although it has been accepted by the medical world and introduced into the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual of Mental Disorders, there is still a great deal of individuals expressing doubt regarding the malady's existence. People today experience PTSD in a more diverse range of environments and this makes it difficult for doctors to be able to provide clear diagnostics when they come across patients displaying symptoms characteristic to the disorder. American involvement in conflicts in the Middle East has made it possible for the world to acknowledge the fact that stressing events are actually capable to induce states of terror in individuals.

1. There has been a lot of controversy regarding Post-traumatic stress disorder in the recent decades, as even though many believe that it exists and that it is essential for society to acknowledge its significance, others consider that the concept is actually fictional. Doctors presently diagnose a great deal of individuals with PTSD as a consequence of the fact that these persons report experiencing trouble performing simple tasks because they constantly relate to a traumatic event in their past. It is very probable that some people are unable to accept the existence of PTSD because of the symptoms related to the disorder and because of the fact that it is very difficult for doctors to provide an accurate diagnosis regarding it. Even though it is a newly discovered disorder, PTSD is actually real and is meant to describe psychological traumas that were typically ignored and that are generally responsible for inducing painful mental states into individuals.

2. PTSD is presently a divisive matter because it is a recently discovered disorder, thus meaning that information on it is limited and not all of the symptoms attributed to it are considered to be solid proof by individuals who express uncertainty concerning it. PTSD was recognized as a real disorder in 1980, at the moment when it was introduced into the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual of Mental Disorders. PTSD is normally believed to induce stress and fear into people consequent to the moment when they undergo a traumatic event.

a. PTSD is actually a real disorder and one "can get PTSD after living through or seeing a traumatic event, such as war, a hurricane, rape, physical abuse or a bad accident" (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). The disorder does not only affect the individual who has it, as it is can also have a negative effect on people interacting with the respective person. It does not necessarily have to start right after a traumatic event, as it can emerge many years after such an occurrence. Factors like age or gender are not important when considering this disorder, as it can affect a wide range of individuals with no regard to their particularities. People who have PTSD are unable to put their traumas behind them and constantly think about what they went through. Memories can cause nightmares and physical problems, rendering an individual unable to perform actions that he or she had no troubles completing before he or she experienced the trauma.

PTSD symptoms are likely to ameliorate after six months, but there are also cases of people who suffered for much longer as a result of having this disorder. The level of suffering largely depends on the gravity of the trauma, as minor psychological traumas are probable to have little or no effects on an individual while severe shocks can result in acute PTSD symptoms. People are typically unaware of their condition because they consider that it is perfectly normal for them to suffer as a result of the events that they underwent. This makes it difficult for them to get better, as therapy is an essential stage in ameliorating and even in removing symptoms. People who are diagnosed with PTSD need to see doctors who are experienced in dealing with the disorder, as they are better prepared to assist a patient as he or she recovers. In addition to providing medicine meant to make patients more comfortable regarding their experiences, doctors can also provide them with therapy. Therapeutic sessions can involve patients who experienced similar episodes and who feel comfortable talking to individuals with who they can identify. PTSD becomes a real disorder at the time when the patient discovers that he or she feels better as a result of seeing a doctor. Some people are virtually unable to reintegrate society after they experienced a severe trauma and one of the only ways for them to successfully recover is to become familiar with the condition that affects their everyday behavior.

b. When taking into account the concept of Post-traumatic stress disorder, one is likely to think about the trauma factor regarding it. People were typically accustomed to associating traumas with physical matters and society gradually came to accept the fact that the term could also refer to psychology. PTSD, however, is difficult to comprehend from the perspective of someone wanting to associate it with his or her understanding of a disease.

It is more probable that PTSD emerged from political interests than that it came into public attention as a consequence of medical interests. Vietnam veterans were apparently in need of an explanation for their behavior and for the government to acknowledge their suffering through providing them with a series of privileges meant to alleviate the symptoms of their imaginary disorder. Through including PTSD in the DSM, its supporters managed to raise public awareness regarding the condition and influenced a great deal of individuals and doctors to focus on diagnosing the malady. The fact that society accepted the existence of this disorder made it possible for a "trauma industry" to be created. People learnt that they could be severely affected by an external stressor and that it their problems did not actually need to be connected to a physical factor. Doctors actually started to develop programs meant to assist people that experienced a particular type of disaster at a certain point in their lives, as it was apparently very important for them to be provided with specialized care.

The world of medicine is deeply involved in supporting the belief that PTSD exists, and, to a certain degree, it can be considered responsible for the fact that the disorder is presently admitted as a psychological condition. The Vietnam War played an essential role in making it possible for PTSD to be recognized as a veritable disorder. People returning from Vietnam reported experiencing great stress as a result of what they felt or seen there. However, while the number of Vietnam veterans diagnosed with PTSD neared one million, there were only three hundred thousand soldiers who experienced combat first-hand.

3. In spite of the fact that PTSD has been the topic of numerous controversies during the recent years, it is impossible for it to be nothing more than fiction. People are actually suffering because of the traumas that they experienced and doctors are actually capable of providing them with assistance in order to ameliorate the disorder's symptoms. Denying the existence of PTSD would practically mean that one would have to tell a great deal of people that the medical world has lied to them all along and that it is perfectly normal for them to suffer as they do. Similarly, especially considering that PTSD patients were previously diagnosed with other psychological affections, many doctors would probably diagnose individuals with disorders like schizophrenia as a result of being unable to accurately determine the reason and the symptoms for these people's affection.

With the conflict in the Middle East lasting for approximately ten years now, PTSD has once again influenced people in getting involved in the traditional debate concerning their position in regard to the disorder. The fact that American troops in the Middle East experienced warfare to a lesser degree in comparison to soldiers in Vietnam contributes to having society express less interest concerning PTSD. However, the general public tends to ignore the conflict's effect on civilians in the Middle East, considering that they experienced war first-hand and have difficulty recovering as a result of what they saw and went through (Trauma and PTSD among Civilians in the Middle East).

Not only is PTSD not provided with sufficient attention, as there are many individuals who know little or nothing about the disorder. This makes it difficult for some doctors to properly attribute symptoms they see in certain patients to a particular malady. As a consequence, a great deal of people has to suffer on their own with no one being able to provide them with a thorough explanation regarding their condition. These respective individuals virtually have to suffer in silence because people generally believe that their disorder does not exist. This makes it difficult…